Thrift finishes 5th in FLW Tour standings

Bryan Thrift works with a bait at Grand Lake in Grove, Okla., where he finished second in an FLW Tour Majors division tournament this season. He finished fifth in the Angler of the Year standings and will compete in the Forrest Wood Cup Aug. 15-18 on the Red River in Shreveport, La. (Rob Newell/Special to The Star)

Published: Saturday, August 10, 2013 at 09:17 PM.

The Shelby angler finished fifth, his sixth consecutive top-10 finish in the series’ standings that comes with another trip to the prestigious Forrest Wood Cup.

But that would only tell a small part of the story. Thrift struggled in two early tournaments but recovered to enter the final tournament second in the standings and with a chance at his second Angler of the Year honor.

He was 63rd in that event at Lake Chickamauga but couldn't add his second AOY accolade — he won the award in 2010.

“This year was kind of more like a rollercoaster,” Thrift said in a recent interview.

He’s grateful for a pair of second-place finishes — at Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Ala., and Grand Lake in Grove, Okla. — that helped 2013 finish on an upswing.

“After the second tournament, I thought I had blown my chance at Angler of the Year,” Thrift said. “To come back and still have a shot at it at the end of the year was great.”

The Shelby angler finished fifth, his sixth consecutive top-10 finish in the series’ standings that comes with another trip to the prestigious Forrest Wood Cup.

But that would only tell a small part of the story. Thrift struggled in two early tournaments but recovered to enter the final tournament second in the standings and with a chance at his second Angler of the Year honor.

He was 63rd in that event at Lake Chickamauga but couldn't add his second AOY accolade — he won the award in 2010.

“This year was kind of more like a rollercoaster,” Thrift said in a recent interview.

He’s grateful for a pair of second-place finishes — at Lake Eufaula in Eufaula, Ala., and Grand Lake in Grove, Okla. — that helped 2013 finish on an upswing.

“After the second tournament, I thought I had blown my chance at Angler of the Year,” Thrift said. “To come back and still have a shot at it at the end of the year was great.”

One of the lakes that helped him get back in contention, Grand Lake, was one he hadn’t fished before. That setup usually bodes well for Thrift, whose main local sponsor is Great Outdoors in Cherryville.

“I love going into lakes that I’ve never fished before,” Thrift said. “You go into practice with an open mind. You’re willing to try anything. You’re sampling what the fish are doing instead of what they should be doing.”

Even familiar lakes felt that way for him this year with the impact of unusual seasonal patterns. Thrift finished in the top 10 in three of the six FLW tournaments this season.

Though the FLW Majors finale didn’t end how he had hoped, it wasn’t a total disappointment for Thrift. Andy Morgan, who took fifth place to wrap up Angler of the Year, is a good friend of his. Thrift actually stayed at Morgan’s house that week.

“I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. If you’re going to win Angler of the Year, you have to earn it,” Thrift said. “I was going to have to beat the best angler on his best lake.”

Now, Thrift heads to the Forrest Wood Cup, which is Aug. 15-18 on the Red River in Shreveport, La. He’s guaranteed at least $10,000 in prize money just by participating.